Plot: Pride and Prejudice is about the Bennet family who have five daughters Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty, and Lydia. Mrs. Bennet is desperate to see them all married.In the beginning of the book, a wealthy young gentleman named Charles Bingley has rented the manor of Netherfield Park. The Bennets go to a ball that Mr. Bingley is at. He likes Jane and spends most of the night dancing with her. His close friend, Mr. Darcy refuses to dance with Elizabeth, which makes everyone think he is obnoxious and arrogant. Throughout the rest of the book, Mr. Darcy becomes more and more attracted to Elizabeth. This book is a story about finding true love and how Elizabeth steps outside the social norm.
Characters:
Elizabeth Bennet -Pride and Prejudice's protagonist. The second daughter of Mr. Bennet, Elizabeth is the most intelligent, quick witted and sensible of the five Bennet sisters. Darcy’s kindness eventually overcomes her initial prejudice against him. Fitzwilliam Darcy - A wealthy man who is the nephew of Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Although Darcy is intelligent and honest, his pride sometimes causes him to look down on people less socially successful than he is. Over the course of the novel, he stops judging people by the amount of wealth and success they have and learns to admire and love Elizabeth for her strong character. Jane Bennet - The oldest and most beautiful Bennet sister. Jane is gentler and much more reserved than Elizabeth. Charles Bingley - Darcy’s very wealthy best friend. Bingley purchased Netherfield, an estate near the Bennets, early in the book. He has good intentions and is easygoing and he doesn't care about social close as much as Mr. Darcy does. Lydia Bennet - The youngest Bennet sister, she is gossipy, immature, and self-absorbed. Lydia flings herself headlong into romance and ends up running off with Wickham, unlike Elizabeth. Mary Bennet - The middle Bennet sister, studious and dull.Catherine Bennet - The fourth Bennet sister. Much like her sister Lydia.
Why this book is outstanding:
I think this book is on the Outstanding Books for the College Bound list because it is one of the most cherished love stories in English literature. It is a romance about a young woman who learns about her own prejudices and a man who learns to control his pride. Pride and Prejudice describes how the Elizabeth's prejudices and first impressions change throughout the novel. Elizabeth's judgments about other peoples' character are only accurate about half of the time. While she is correct about Mr. Collins and how self-absorbed he is and about Lady Catherine de Bourgh and how proud and snobbish she is, her first impressions of Wickham and Darcy are incorrect. Wickham is first thought to be a gentleman by everyone. His good looks and easygoing personality fool almost everyone, and Elizabeth believes him when he tells her that Darcy is a liar. She realizes later that Wickham is the liar. Elizabeth and many of the other characters see Darcy as stuck-up. "The gentlemen pronounced him to be a fine figure of a man, the ladies declared he was much handsomer than Mr. Bingley, and he was looked at with great admiration for about half the evening, till his manners gave a disgust which tuned the tide of his popularity; for he as discovered to be proud, to be above his company, and above being pleased; and not all his large estate in Derbyshire could then save him from having a most forbidding, disagreeable countenance, and being unworthy to be compared with his friend" (58).
Overall, Pride and Prejudice teaches the reader that you shouldn't judge people by their social class, what other people think of them, or what you think of them right away. It teaches that you should get to know someone before you judge them.
Pride and Prejudice
Plot: Pride and Prejudice is about the Bennet family who have five daughters Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty, and Lydia. Mrs. Bennet is desperate to see them all married.In the beginning of the book, a wealthy young gentleman named Charles Bingley has rented the manor of Netherfield Park. The Bennets go to a ball that Mr. Bingley is at. He likes Jane and spends most of the night dancing with her. His close friend, Mr. Darcy refuses to dance with Elizabeth, which makes everyone think he is obnoxious and arrogant. Throughout the rest of the book, Mr. Darcy becomes more and more attracted to Elizabeth. This book is a story about finding true love and how Elizabeth steps outside the social norm.Characters:
Elizabeth Bennet - Pride and Prejudice's protagonist. The second daughter of Mr. Bennet, Elizabeth is the most intelligent, quick witted and sensible of the five Bennet sisters. Darcy’s kindness eventually overcomes her initial prejudice against him.Fitzwilliam Darcy - A wealthy man who is the nephew of Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Although Darcy is intelligent and honest, his pride sometimes causes him to look down on people less socially successful than he is. Over the course of the novel, he stops judging people by the amount of wealth and success they have and learns to admire and love Elizabeth for her strong character.
Jane Bennet - The oldest and most beautiful Bennet sister. Jane is gentler and much more reserved than Elizabeth.
Charles Bingley - Darcy’s very wealthy best friend. Bingley purchased Netherfield, an estate near the Bennets, early in the book. He has good intentions and is easygoing and he doesn't care about social close as much as Mr. Darcy does.
Lydia Bennet - The youngest Bennet sister, she is gossipy, immature, and self-absorbed. Lydia flings herself headlong into romance and ends up running off with Wickham, unlike Elizabeth.
Mary Bennet - The middle Bennet sister, studious and dull.Catherine Bennet - The fourth Bennet sister. Much like her sister Lydia.
Why this book is outstanding:
I think this book is on the Outstanding Books for the College Bound list because it is one of the most cherished love stories in English literature. It is a romance about a young woman who learns about her own prejudices and a man who learns to control his pride. Pride and Prejudice describes how the Elizabeth's prejudices and first impressions change throughout the novel. Elizabeth's judgments about other peoples' character are only accurate about half of the time. While she is correct about Mr. Collins and how self-absorbed he is and about Lady Catherine de Bourgh and how proud and snobbish she is, her first impressions of Wickham and Darcy are incorrect. Wickham is first thought to be a gentleman by everyone. His good looks and easygoing personality fool almost everyone, and Elizabeth believes him when he tells her that Darcy is a liar. She realizes later that Wickham is the liar. Elizabeth and many of the other characters see Darcy as stuck-up. "The gentlemen pronounced him to be a fine figure of a man, the ladies declared he was much handsomer than Mr. Bingley, and he was looked at with great admiration for about half the evening, till his manners gave a disgust which tuned the tide of his popularity; for he as discovered to be proud, to be above his company, and above being pleased; and not all his large estate in Derbyshire could then save him from having a most forbidding, disagreeable countenance, and being unworthy to be compared with his friend" (58).
Overall, Pride and Prejudice teaches the reader that you shouldn't judge people by their social class, what other people think of them, or what you think of them right away. It teaches that you should get to know someone before you judge them.